Istanbul to host Turkey-Russia-Iran summit on Syria

Turkey, Russia and Iran are expected to hold a presidential summit in Istanbul to discuss efforts to find a political settlement to the Syrian civil war, amid rising tension in Idlib province and Turkey’s ongoing military operation in the Afrin district.

The three-way summit was discussed during a phone conversation between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin early on Feb. 8, during which they also discussed Turkey’s “Operation Olive Branch” into Afrin.

Turkish sources said the two leaders agreed to hold a top-level meeting with the inclusion of Iranian President Hasan Rouhani in Istanbul, following their summit in Sochi in late November 2017. The date of the upcoming Istanbul summit has not been decided.